Discover the meaning of the term Al-khaʾn (خائن) in Islamic vocabulary.
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Updated on 11 April 2026 at 1:05 AM
📖 2 min readThe treacherous; taken from 'khana yakhunuhu khiyana': he betrayed him, that is, dealt perfidiously with him; 'khana al-'ahd': he did not fulfill the covenant; 'khana al-amana': he did not render it in full; 'khana al-haqq': he violated it. Benefit: in the hadith: 'The testimony of a treacherous man, a treacherous woman, or a man burdened with debt on behalf of his brother is not permissible' [Abu Dawud, 'al-Aqdiya', 16]. Abu Ubayd said: Do you not see that he restricted treachery to people's trusts without excluding what Allah imposed upon His servants and entrusted them with?
He indeed named that a trust (amana), so Allah, the Most High, said: 'O you who believe, do not betray Allah and the Messenger, nor betray your trusts while you know.'
(With kasra on the hamza): active participle of 'khana' (to betray), with 'khawna' and 'khiyana'. Faithlessness, deceiving: he dealt perfidiously with him and did not preserve the trust.